Loader application with secondary embedded application object

ABSTRACT

Methods, systems, and non-transitory computer-readable media for embedding a secondary application object within a loader application are described herein. In some embodiments, a computing platform may initiate a first iOS application comprising a first name and a first instance of UIApplication comprising an NSObject class. Further, the computing platform may embed into the first iOS application, a second iOS application comprising a second name, a second instance of UIApplication, and a first derived class. Next, the computing platform may generate, based on NSObject and the first derived class, a second derived class. Additionally, the computing platform may generate an iPhone Application (IPA) file comprising the first iOS application wherein the first iOS application comprises the second derived class and the second name. Subsequently, the computing platform may distribute via a communication interface, the IPA file.

FIELD

Aspects described herein generally relate to computer hardware andsoftware, including iOS application development. In particular, one ormore aspects of the disclosure relate to computer hardware and softwarefor embedding a secondary application object within a loaderapplication.

BACKGROUND

Enterprise organizations and their employees are increasingly lookingfor ways to secure iOS applications. As iOS applications are morefrequently adopted and used, it is increasingly important to securethese iOS applications in order to protect the safety and security ofenterprise information and other enterprise resources. For example,enterprise organizations may secure iOS applications prior to executionthrough an app-wrapping process, which then catches hooks duringruntime. However, while some hooks may be caught, others might not. Insome instances, this may present technical challenges. There remains anever-present need to improve methods for securing iOS applications.

SUMMARY

The following presents a simplified summary of various aspects describedherein. This summary is not an extensive overview, and is not intendedto identify required or critical elements or to delineate the scope ofthe claims. The following summary merely presents some concepts in asimplified form as an introductory prelude to the more detaileddescription provided below.

To overcome limitations in the prior art described above, and toovercome other limitations that will be apparent upon reading andunderstanding the present specification, aspects described herein aredirected towards a loader application with a secondary embeddedapplication object. For example, this loader application may load anembedded application into memory and subsequently execute theapplication. The loader application may implement derived classes toallow the loader application to behave like the embedded applicationwithout causing technical challenges, such as applicationincompatibility or failed execution.

In accordance with one or more embodiments, a computing platform havingat least one processor, memory, and a communication interface mayinitiate, by the at least one processor, a first iOS applicationcomprising a first name and a first instance of UIApplication comprisingan NSObject class. Subsequently, the computing platform may embed, bythe at least one processor and into the first iOS application, a secondiOS application comprising a second name, a second instance ofUIApplication, and a first derived class. Thereafter, the computingplatform may generate, by the at least one processor, based on NSObjectand the first derived class, a second derived class. In addition, thecomputing platform may generate, by the at least one processor, aniPhone Application (IPA) file comprising the first iOS applicationwherein the first iOS application comprises the second derived class andthe second name. Further, the computing platform may transmit, by the atleast one processor, via the communication interface, and to a pluralityof mobile devices, the IPA file.

In some instances, the computing platform may inspect by the at leastone processor and via objectiveC inspection classes, the first derivedclass. Further, the first derived class may comprise at least one of: avariable of the second iOS application, a selector of the second iOSapplication, a method of the second iOS application, and a property ofthe second iOS application. Additionally, the computing platform mayinspect the first derived class at runtime.

In some examples, the computing platform may load, by the at least oneprocessor and within an address space of the first iOS application, thesecond iOS application. In some instances, the computing platform mayload, prior to the embedding, the second iOS application.

In some embodiments, the computing platform may configure by the atleast one processor, the second derived class as a forwarding object forunknown selectors.

In some instances, the first iOS application may comprise a loaderapplication and the second iOS application may comprise a third partyapplication.

These and additional aspects will be appreciated with the benefit of thedisclosures discussed in further detail below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete understanding of aspects described herein and theadvantages thereof may be acquired by referring to the followingdescription in consideration of the accompanying drawings, in which likereference numbers indicate like features, and wherein:

FIG. 1 depicts an illustrative computer system architecture that may beused in accordance with one or more illustrative aspects describedherein.

FIG. 2 depicts an example method for using a first application to embeda second application in accordance with one or more illustrative aspectsdescribed hererin.

FIG. 3 depicts an example method 300 for processing, at a user deviceand after generation of the IPA file, an embedded application inaccordance with one or more illustrative aspects described hererin.

FIG. 4 depicts an example event sequence for using a loader applicationto embed a secondary application in accordance with one or moreillustrative aspects described herein.

FIG. 5 depicts an illustrative enterprise mobility management system inaccordance with one or more illustrative aspects described herein.

FIG. 6 depicts another illustrative enterprise mobility managementsystem in accordance with one or more illustrative aspects describedherein.

FIG. 7 depicts an example loader application with a secondary embeddedapplication object in accordance with one or more illustrative aspectsdescribed herein.

FIG. 8 depicts an example computing device implementing a loaderapplication with an embedded secondary application in accordance withone or more illustrative aspects described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description of the various embodiments, reference ismade to the accompanying drawings identified above and which form a parthereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration various embodimentsin which aspects described herein may be practiced. It is to beunderstood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural andfunctional modifications may be made without departing from the scopedescribed herein. Various aspects are capable of other embodiments andof being practiced or being carried out in various different ways.

As a general introduction to the subject matter described in more detailbelow, aspects described herein are directed towards embedding asecondary application object within a loader application in an operatingsystem such as iOS. A computing platform may determine an NSObject classfor the loader application, and a first derived class for the secondaryapplication object. The loader application may comprise a first instanceof UIApplication, and the secondary application object may comprise asecond instance of UIApplication. The computing platform may determine,for the loader application and based on the NSObject class and the firstderived class, a second derived class comprising the methods of both thefirst instance of UIApplication and the second instance ofUIApplication. The computer platform may generate an iPhone Application(IPA) file based on the second class, and distribute the IPA file to auser device. This may allow the loader application to perform thefunctions of the secondary application object, on a user device, withoutcalling a second instance of UIApplication.

It is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used hereinare for the purpose of description and should not be regarded aslimiting. Rather, the phrases and terms used herein are to be giventheir broadest interpretation and meaning. The use of “including” and“comprising” and variations thereof is meant to encompass the itemslisted thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional itemsand equivalents thereof. The use of the terms “mounted,” “connected,”“coupled,” “positioned,” “engaged” and similar terms, is meant toinclude both direct and indirect mounting, connecting, coupling,positioning and engaging.

Computing Architecture

Computer software, hardware, and networks may be utilized in a varietyof different system environments, including standalone, networked,remote-access (also known as remote desktop), virtualized, and/orcloud-based environments, among others. FIG. 1 illustrates one exampleof a system architecture and data processing device that may be used toimplement one or more illustrative aspects described herein in astandalone and/or networked environment. Various network nodes 103, 105,107, and 109 may be interconnected via a wide area network (WAN) 101,such as the Internet. Other networks may also or alternatively be used,including private intranets, corporate networks, local area networks(LAN), metropolitan area networks (MAN), wireless networks, personalnetworks (PAN), and the like. Network 101 is for illustration purposesand may be replaced with fewer or additional computer networks. A localarea network 133 may have one or more of any known LAN topology and mayuse one or more of a variety of different protocols, such as Ethernet.Devices 103, 105, 107, and 109 and other devices (not shown) may beconnected to one or more of the networks via twisted pair wires, coaxialcable, fiber optics, radio waves, or other communication media.

The term “network” as used herein and depicted in the drawings refersnot only to systems in which remote storage devices are coupled togethervia one or more communication paths, but also to stand-alone devicesthat may be coupled, from time to time, to such systems that havestorage capability. Consequently, the term “network” includes not only a“physical network” but also a “content network,” which is comprised ofthe data—attributable to a single entity—which resides across allphysical networks.

The components may include data server 103, web server 105, and clientcomputers 107, 109. Data server 103 provides overall access, control andadministration of databases and control software for performing one ormore illustrative aspects describe herein. Data server 103 may beconnected to web server 105 through which users interact with and obtaindata as requested. Alternatively, data server 103 may act as a webserver itself and be directly connected to the Internet. Data server 103may be connected to web server 105 through the local area network 133,the wide area network 101 (e.g., the Internet), via direct or indirectconnection, or via some other network. Users may interact with the dataserver 103 using remote computers 107, 109, e.g., using a web browser toconnect to the data server 103 via one or more externally exposed websites hosted by web server 105. Client computers 107, 109 may be used inconcert with data server 103 to access data stored therein, or may beused for other purposes. For example, from client device 107 a user mayaccess web server 105 using an Internet browser, as is known in the art,or by executing a software application that communicates with web server105 and/or data server 103 over a computer network (such as theInternet).

Servers and applications may be combined on the same physical machines,and retain separate virtual or logical addresses, or may reside onseparate physical machines. FIG. 1 illustrates just one example of anetwork architecture that may be used, and those of skill in the artwill appreciate that the specific network architecture and dataprocessing devices used may vary, and are secondary to the functionalitythat they provide, as further described herein. For example, servicesprovided by web server 105 and data server 103 may be combined on asingle server.

Each component 103, 105, 107, 109 may be any type of known computer,server, or data processing device. Data server 103, e.g., may include aprocessor 111 controlling overall operation of the data server 103. Dataserver 103 may further include random access memory (RAM) 113, read onlymemory (ROM) 115, network interface 117, input/output interfaces 119(e.g., keyboard, mouse, display, printer, etc.), and memory 121.Input/output (I/O) 119 may include a variety of interface units anddrives for reading, writing, displaying, and/or printing data or files.Memory 121 may further store operating system software 123 forcontrolling overall operation of the data processing device 103, controllogic 125 for instructing data server 103 to perform aspects describedherein, and other application software 127 providing secondary, support,and/or other functionality which may or might not be used in conjunctionwith aspects described herein. The control logic may also be referred toherein as the data server software 125. Functionality of the data serversoftware may refer to operations or decisions made automatically basedon rules coded into the control logic, made manually by a user providinginput into the system, and/or a combination of automatic processingbased on user input (e.g., queries, data updates, etc.).

Memory 121 may also store data used in performance of one or moreaspects described herein, including a first database 129 and a seconddatabase 131. In some embodiments, the first database may include thesecond database (e.g., as a separate table, report, etc.). That is, theinformation can be stored in a single database, or separated intodifferent logical, virtual, or physical databases, depending on systemdesign. Devices 105, 107, and 109 may have similar or differentarchitecture as described with respect to device 103. Those of skill inthe art will appreciate that the functionality of data processing device103 (or device 105, 107, or 109) as described herein may be spreadacross multiple data processing devices, for example, to distributeprocessing load across multiple computers, to segregate transactionsbased on geographic location, user access level, quality of service(QoS), etc.

One or more aspects may be embodied in computer-usable or readable dataand/or computer-executable instructions, such as in one or more programmodules, executed by one or more computers or other devices as describedherein. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, objects,components, data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks orimplement particular abstract data types when executed by a processor ina computer or other device. The modules may be written in a source codeprogramming language that is subsequently compiled for execution, or maybe written in a scripting language such as (but not limited to)HyperText Markup Language (HTML) or Extensible Markup Language (XML).The computer executable instructions may be stored on a computerreadable medium such as a nonvolatile storage device. Any suitablecomputer readable storage media may be utilized, including hard disks,CD-ROMs, optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, and/or anycombination thereof. In addition, various transmission (non-storage)media representing data or events as described herein may be transferredbetween a source and a destination in the form of electromagnetic wavestraveling through signal-conducting media such as metal wires, opticalfibers, and/or wireless transmission media (e.g., air and/or space).Various aspects described herein may be embodied as a method, a dataprocessing system, or a computer program product. Therefore, variousfunctionalities may be embodied in whole or in part in software,firmware, and/or hardware or hardware equivalents such as integratedcircuits, field programmable gate arrays (FPGA), and the like.Particular data structures may be used to more effectively implement oneor more aspects described herein, and such data structures arecontemplated within the scope of computer executable instructions andcomputer-usable data described herein.

Loader Application with Secondary Embedded Application Object Methods

As discussed above, aspects of the disclosure relate to using a loaderapplication to embed a secondary application. In addition, one or moreaspects of the disclosure may incorporate, be embodied in, and/or beimplemented using on or more of the computer system architecture, and/orenterprise mobility management systems described in FIGS. 1, 5, and 6.

FIG. 2 depicts an example method 200 for using a first application toembed a second application in accordance with one or more illustrativeaspects described herein. Referring to FIG. 2, at step 210, a computingplatform having at least one processor, a communication interface, and amemory may initialize a first iPhone operating system (iOS) application.The first iOS application may comprise, for example, a loaderapplication. The loader application may comprise an NSObject classspecifying a plurality of parameters. For example, the NSObject classmay specify variables of the loader application, methods of the loaderapplication, selectors of the loader application, and properties of theloader application. The loader application may comprise an iOSapplication that may be used to load a secure version of another iOSapplication. For example, the loader application may comprise acontainer for the second application.

The loader application may comprise a first instance of UIApplication.UIApplication may provide a central control point for iOS applications.Each iOS application may have a single instance of UIApplication.UIApplication may be used to handle initial routing of incoming events.UIApplication may further be used to manage device specific behaviorsuch as control an application's response to changes in interfaceorientation, temporarily suspend incoming touch events, turn proximitysensing off and on, register for remote notifications, trigger anundo-redo user interface, determine whether an installed application canopen a URL, extend execution of an application so that it can finish atask in the background, schedule and cancel local notifications,coordinate the reception of remote-control events, perform applicationlevel state restoration tasks, and the like.

The loader application may implement a main function comprising an entrypoint to the loader application. The main function may callApplicationMain which may generate an interface for the loaderapplication. ApplicationMain may prompt for two parameters: a userapplication class (such as UIApplication class, NIL, a derived classfrom UIApplication, and the like) and UIApplication delegate (an objectthat an iOS application may inform of significant runtime events such asapplication launch, low-memory warnings, and application termination).Additional tasks that UIApplication delegate may perform include:respond to temporary interruptions, respond to changes in an executionstate of an application, respond to notifications from outside theapplication, determine whether state preservation/restoration shouldoccur, respond to events that target an application, store applicationscentral data objects, determine why the application was launched,determine whether state restoration should proceed, register for remotenotifications supported by the application, open a URL sent to theapplication, provide a root window object for the application, and thelike.

ApplicationMain may instantiate an application object from the userapplication class and UIApplication delegate. Additionally,ApplicationMain may determine a main event loop and may begin to processevents. For example, ApplicationMain may determine a main event loop andmay begin to process events for the loader application.

At step 220 the computing platform may embed, into the first iOSapplication, a second iOS application. For example, a third party maydevelop an iOS application, such as “Company Mail.” The third party maywish to secure “Company Mail,” and thus may embed “Company Mail” intothe loader application. The computing platform may load, prior toembedding the second iOS application and within an address space of thefirst iOS application, the second iOS application. The second iOSapplication may have a different name than the first iOS application maycomprise a second instance of UIApplication and an associated class. Inone example, the second iOS application may comprise a first derivedclass comprising a custom plurality of parameters, selectors, methods,and properties. The first derived class may be different than theNSObject class. The first derived class may comprise a class derivedfrom the NSObject class, and may be determined via inheritance. Forexample, the first derived class may modify the parameters, selectors,methods, and properties of the NSObject class. This modification may bebased on the purpose of the second iOS application. In another example,the second iOS application may comprise the NSObject class.

At step 230, the computing platform may determine whether the second iOSapplication, embedded by the computing platform in step 220, comprises aderived class different than the NSObject class of the first iOSapplication, initiated in step 210. The computing platform may comparethe parameters, selectors, methods, and properties of the classassociated with the second instance of UIApplication to the parameters,selectors, methods, and properties of the NSObject class of the firstinstance of UIApplication. The computing platform may compare theclasses by inspecting, at runtime and via objectiveC inspection classes,the class associated with the second instance of UIApplication. Forexample, the computing platform may implement an NSMutableDictionarywhich may key on names of the parameters, selectors, methods andproperties associated with each of the first instance of UIApplicationand the second instance of UIApplication.

NSMutableDictionary may comprise a dynamic collection of key-value pairsassociated with the parameters, selectors, methods, and properties ofeach of the first instance of UIApplication and the second instance ofUIApplication. If the second iOS application does not comprise a firstderived class different than the NSObject class of the first iOSapplication, the computing platform may proceed to step 250. If thesecond iOS application does comprise a first derived class differentthan the NSObject class of the first iOS application, the computingplatform may proceed to step 240.

At step 240, the computing platform may generate, based on the NSObjectclass and the first derived class, a second derived class. For example,the computing platform may determine, via inheritance, the secondderived class. This may allow the first iOS application to implementfunctions of the second iOS application without calling the secondinstance of UIApplication. For example, this may allow the loaderapplication to function as the “Company Mail” application by calling thefirst instance of UIApplication. The second derived class may comprisethe parameters, selectors, methods, and properties of the NSObjectclass, as well as the parameters, selectors, methods, and properties ofthe first derived class. This may allow the second derived class tocomprise logic from the first derived class, associated with the secondinstance of UIApplication, and logic from the NSObject class, associatedwith the first instance of UIApplication.

At step 250, the computing platform may generate an iPhone Application(IPA) file comprising the second iOS application embedded within thefirst iOS application. The IPA file may comprise the name of the secondiOS application. For example, the IPA file may be named “Company Mail.”

To generate the IPA file, the computing platform may perform thefollowing steps. First, the computing platform may build theapplication. If the build is successful, the computing platform mayreceive an input requesting that the computing platform navigate to the“Products” folder in project navigator. The computing platform mayreceive a right click input, and may display an option “Show in Finder.”Responsive to receiving an input corresponding to the “Show in Finder”option, the computing platform may copy the application file. Thecomputing platform may create a new folder at a new location, and pastethe application file into the new folder. The computing platform may zipthe new folder, and rename the new folder with .ipa. Although anexemplary method for generating an IPA file is described above, itshould be understood that many other methods for generating an IPA fileare known in the art and may be substituted. It should be understoodthat these other methods are not outside of the scope of the disclosure.

At step 260, the computing platform may distribute the IPA filegenerated at step 250. For example, the computing platform may upload,to a server associated with the iTunes application store, the IPA file.This may allow a user to download and subsequently execute the IPA fileon one of the plurality of mobile devices, thus allowing him or her toaccess a secure version of the second iOS application via the first iOSapplication. For example, this may allow a third party to generate anapplication, secure the application, and distribute the secureapplication to a plurality of user devices.

FIG. 3 depicts an example method 300 for processing, at a user deviceand after generation of the IPA file described above at FIG. 2, anembedded application in accordance with one or more illustrative aspectsdescribed hererin. Referring to FIG. 3, at step 305, a mobile device mayrequest the IPA file distributed to the server at step 260. For example,the mobile device may download, from the iTunes application store, theIPA file. For example, the user may download “Company Mail” from theiTunes application store.

At step 310, the mobile device may receive the IPA file requested atstep 305. For example, the mobile device may download the IPA file tothe mobile device. The IPA file may comprise a container file for aloader application comprising a derived class that comprises the logicfrom both the loader application and a second iOS application, such asthe second iOS application embedded into the first iOS application atstep 220.

At step 320, the user device may display the loader application. Forexample, the mobile device may use software such as iTunes, Bandizip,MoboMarket For iOS, Free File Viewer and the like to open the IPA fileand access the loader application. Once the loader application isaccessed, the user device may display an icon for the loaderapplication. For example, the user device may generate a user interfacecomprising an icon for the loader application. The user interface maycomprise, for example, the home screen on an iPhone. The user device maydisplay the loader application along with the name of the second iOSapplication. For example, the loader application may appear, on the userinterface, to comprise the second iOS application. In one example, theloader application may appear on the user interface as, for example,“Company Mail.” An example of the user interface is depicted in FIG. 8.

At step 330, the user device may execute the loader application. Forexample, the user device may receive a user input, via the userinterface described at step 320, requesting the second iOS application.Responsive to receiving the user input, the user device may initiate theloader application.

At step 340, the user device may implement functions of the second iOSapplication via the loader application. The user device may receive arequest, from the user, to implement functions of the second iOSapplication. The request may be forwarded to the loader application,which may implement the derived class, thus allowing the loaderapplication to perform the requested functions of the second iOSapplication. This may allow the user device to implement the functionsof the second iOS application by calling a first instance ofUIApplication associated with the loader application, and withoutcalling an second instance of UIApplication associated with the secondiOS application. This may allow the loader application to implementcustom behaviors of the second iOS application, while allowing theloader application to maintain control over the first instance ofUIApplication by permitting the first instance of UIApplication and thesecond instance of UIApplication to work as a single UIApplication. Forexample, the second iOS application may comprise “Company Mail,” andthus the user device may generate the “Company Mail” user interface, andallow the user to execute, via the loader application, the samefunctions that he or she otherwise would while using the actual “CompanyMail” program such as send/receive e-mail, browse an inbox, and thelike.

FIG. 4 depicts an example event sequence for using a loader applicationto embed a secondary application in accordance with one or moreillustrative aspects described herein. For example, FIG. 4 shows theinterplay between the methods 200 and 300. Referring to FIG. 4, at step430 the computing platform 410 may initiate a first iOS application.This computing platform 410 may comprise the computing platform used toperform the method 200. The computing platform 410 may initiate thefirst iOS application which may comprise a loader application used tosecure third party applications. The first iOS application may comprisea first instance of UIApplication that may comprise an NSObject classcomprising a plurality of variables, selectors, methods, and properties.Actions performed at step 430 may be similar to those described abovewith regards to step 210.

At step 440, the computing platform 410 may embed, into the first iOSapplication, a second iOS application. The computing platform 410 mayinitiate the second iOS application. For example, the computing platform410 may load, within an address space of the first iOS application, thesecond iOS application. The second iOS application may comprise a thirdparty application. The second iOS application may comprise a secondinstance of UIApplication, and thus may comprise a class that isdifferent than or the same as the NSObject class comprising the firstinstance of UIApplication. For example, the class associated with thesecond iOS application may comprise a first derived class, comprising aplurality of variables, selectors, methods, and properties that aredifferent than the plurality of variables, selectors, methods, andproperties comprising the NSObject class of the first iOS application.The computing platform 410 may compare the class associated with thesecond iOS application to the NSObject class associated with the firstiOS application by inspecting, via objective inspection classes, theclasses associated with the first iOS application and the second iOSapplication respectively. Actions performed at step 440 may be similarto those described above with regards to step 220 and 230.

At step 450, after determining that the second instance of UIApplicationcomprises a first derived class at step 440, the computing platform 410may generate a second derived class for the second iOS application. Thesecond derived class may comprise the variables, selectors, methods, andproperties of both the first instance of UIApplication and the secondinstance of UIApplication. This may allow a device to execute methods ofthe second iOS application, embedded within the first iOS application,without calling the second instance of UIApplication. Actions performedat step 450 may be similar to those described above with regards to step240.

At step 460, the computing platform 410 may generate an IPA filecomprising the second iOS application, embedded within the first iOSapplication. The IPA file may comprise the second derived class. Actionsperformed at step 460 may be similar to those described above withregards to step 250.

At step 470, the computing platform may distribute the IPA file,generated at step 460, to a server 415. Actions performed at step 470may be similar to those described above with regards to step 260.

At step 473, the server 415 may receive, from the user device 420, arequest for the IPA file, uploaded at step 470. For example, a user mayrequest, via a user interface comprising the user device 420, the IPAfile. As an example, the user may navigate, on the user device 420, tothe Application Store in iTunes, and may select the IPA file fordownload. Actions performed at step 473 may be similar to thosedescribed above with regards to step 305.

At step 476, the server 415 may transmit, to the user device 420 andresponsive to receiving the request, the IPA file. Actions performed atstep 476 may be similar to those described above with regards to step310.

At step 480, the user device 420 may receive, from the server 415 andvia the transmission described at step 476, the IPA file. The IPA filemay comprise a loader application comprising the second derived class.As such, the user device 420 may be capable of implementing functions ofthe second iOS application via the loader application. The user device420 may display the first iOS application comprising the IPA file on auser interface comprising the user device 420. The user interface maycomprise an icon representative of the second iOS application along withthe name of the second iOS application. For example, if the second iOSapplication comprises “Company Mail,” the icon for the first iOSapplication may comprise an email icon and the text “Company Mail,”below the icon. This user interface is depicted in FIG. 8. Actionsperformed at step 480 may be similar to those described above withregards to step 310.

At step 490, the user device 420 may initiate the first iOS applicationcomprising the IPA file. For example, as described at 480, the first iOSapplication may comprise a loader application. The user device 420 mayinitiate the first iOS application in response to receiving a user inputvia the user interface. For example, a user may touch the “Company Mail”icon, indicating an intention to open the second iOS application.Actions performed at step 490 may be similar to those described abovewith regards to step 330.

At step 495, the user device 420 may implement the functions of thesecond iOS application. For example, the second iOS application maycomprise “Company Mail” and the user device 420 may perform thefunctions of “Company Mail,” such as send/receive email, browsemessages, and the like. Actions performed at step 495 may be similar tothose described above with regards to step 340.

Enterprise Mobility Management Architecture

FIG. 5 represents an enterprise mobility technical architecture 500 foruse in a “Bring Your Own Device” (BYOD) environment. The architectureenables a user of a mobile device 502 to both access enterprise orpersonal resources from a mobile device 502 and use the mobile device502 for personal use. The user may access such enterprise resources 504or enterprise services 508 using a mobile device 502 that is purchasedby the user or a mobile device 502 that is provided by the enterprise tothe user. The user may utilize the mobile device 502 for business useonly or for business and personal use. The mobile device 502 may run aniOS operating system, an Android operating system, or the like. Theenterprise may choose to implement policies to manage the mobile device502. The policies may be implemented through a firewall or gateway insuch a way that the mobile device 502 may be identified, secured orsecurity verified, and provided selective or full access to theenterprise resources (e.g., 504 and 508.) The policies may be mobiledevice management policies, mobile application management policies,mobile data management policies, or some combination of mobile device,application, and data management policies. A mobile device 502 that ismanaged through the application of mobile device management policies maybe referred to as an enrolled device.

In some embodiments, the operating system of the mobile device 502 maybe separated into a managed partition 510 and an unmanaged partition512. The managed partition 510 may have policies applied to it to securethe applications running on and data stored in the managed partition510. The applications running on the managed partition 510 may be secureapplications. In other embodiments, all applications may execute inaccordance with a set of one or more policy files received separate fromthe application, and which define one or more security parameters,features, resource restrictions, and/or other access controls that areenforced by the mobile device management system when that application isexecuting on the mobile device 502. By operating in accordance withtheir respective policy file(s), each application may be allowed orrestricted from communications with one or more other applicationsand/or resources, thereby creating a virtual partition. Thus, as usedherein, a partition may refer to a physically partitioned portion ofmemory (physical partition), a logically partitioned portion of memory(logical partition), and/or a virtual partition created as a result ofenforcement of one or more policies and/or policy files across multipleapplications as described herein (virtual partition). Stateddifferently, by enforcing policies on managed applications, thoseapplications may be restricted to only be able to communicate with othermanaged applications and trusted enterprise resources, thereby creatinga virtual partition that is not accessible by unmanaged applications anddevices.

The secure applications may be email applications, web browsingapplications, software-as-a-service (SaaS) access applications, WindowsApplication access applications, and the like. The secure applicationsmay be secure native applications 514, secure remote applications 522executed by a secure application launcher 518, virtualizationapplications 526 executed by a secure application launcher 518, and thelike. The secure native applications 514 may be wrapped by a secureapplication wrapper 520. The secure application wrapper 520 may includeintegrated policies that are executed on the mobile device 502 when thesecure native application 514 is executed on the mobile device 502. Thesecure application wrapper 520 may include meta-data that points thesecure native application 514 running on the mobile device 502 to theresources hosted at the enterprise (e.g., 504 and 508) that the securenative application 514 may require to complete the task requested uponexecution of the secure native application 514. The secure remoteapplications 522 executed by a secure application launcher 518 may beexecuted within the secure application launcher 518. The virtualizationapplications 526 executed by a secure application launcher 518 mayutilize resources on the mobile device 502, at the enterprise resources504, and the like. The resources used on the mobile device 502 by thevirtualization applications 526 executed by a secure applicationlauncher 518 may include user interaction resources, processingresources, and the like. The user interaction resources may be used tocollect and transmit keyboard input, mouse input, camera input, tactileinput, audio input, visual input, gesture input, and the like. Theprocessing resources may be used to present a user interface, processdata received from the enterprise resources 504, and the like. Theresources used at the enterprise resources 504 by the virtualizationapplications 526 executed by a secure application launcher 518 mayinclude user interface generation resources, processing resources, andthe like. The user interface generation resources may be used toassemble a user interface, modify a user interface, refresh a userinterface, and the like. The processing resources may be used to createinformation, read information, update information, delete information,and the like. For example, the virtualization application 526 may recorduser interactions associated with a graphical user interface (GUI) andcommunicate them to a server application where the server applicationwill use the user interaction data as an input to the applicationoperating on the server. In such an arrangement, an enterprise may electto maintain the application on the server side as well as data, files,etc. associated with the application. While an enterprise may elect to“mobilize” some applications in accordance with the principles herein bysecuring them for deployment on the mobile device 502, this arrangementmay also be elected for certain applications. For example, while someapplications may be secured for use on the mobile device 502, othersmight not be prepared or appropriate for deployment on the mobile device502 so the enterprise may elect to provide the mobile user access to theunprepared applications through virtualization techniques. As anotherexample, the enterprise may have large complex applications with largeand complex data sets (e.g., material resource planning applications)where it would be very difficult, or otherwise undesirable, to customizethe application for the mobile device 502 so the enterprise may elect toprovide access to the application through virtualization techniques. Asyet another example, the enterprise may have an application thatmaintains highly secured data (e.g., human resources data, customerdata, engineering data) that may be deemed by the enterprise as toosensitive for even the secured mobile environment so the enterprise mayelect to use virtualization techniques to permit mobile access to suchapplications and data. An enterprise may elect to provide both fullysecured and fully functional applications on the mobile device 502 aswell as a virtualization application 526 to allow access to applicationsthat are deemed more properly operated on the server side. In anembodiment, the virtualization application 526 may store some data,files, etc. on the mobile device 502 in one of the secure storagelocations. An enterprise, for example, may elect to allow certaininformation to be stored on the mobile device 502 while not permittingother information.

In connection with the virtualization application 526, as describedherein, the mobile device 502 may have a virtualization application 526that is designed to present GUIs and then record user interactions withthe GUI. The virtualization application 526 may communicate the userinteractions to the server side to be used by the server sideapplication as user interactions with the application. In response, theapplication on the server side may transmit back to the mobile device502 a new GUI. For example, the new GUI may be a static page, a dynamicpage, an animation, or the like, thereby providing access to remotelylocated resources.

The secure applications 514 may access data stored in a secure datacontainer 528 in the managed partition 510 of the mobile device 502. Thedata secured in the secure data container may be accessed by the securenative applications 514, secure remote applications 522 executed by asecure application launcher 518, virtualization applications 526executed by a secure application launcher 518, and the like. The datastored in the secure data container 528 may include files, databases,and the like. The data stored in the secure data container 528 mayinclude data restricted to a specific secure application 530, sharedamong secure applications 532, and the like. Data restricted to a secureapplication may include secure general data 534 and highly secure data538. Secure general data may use a strong form of encryption such asAdvanced Encryption Standard (AES) 128-bit encryption or the like, whilehighly secure data 538 may use a very strong form of encryption such asAES 256-bit encryption. Data stored in the secure data container 528 maybe deleted from the mobile device 502 upon receipt of a command from thedevice manager 524. The secure applications (e.g., 514, 522, and 526)may have a dual-mode option 540. The dual mode option 540 may presentthe user with an option to operate the secured application in anunsecured or unmanaged mode. In an unsecured or unmanaged mode, thesecure applications may access data stored in an unsecured datacontainer 542 on the unmanaged partition 512 of the mobile device 502.The data stored in an unsecured data container may be personal data 544.The data stored in an unsecured data container 542 may also be accessedby unsecured applications 546 that are running on the unmanagedpartition 512 of the mobile device 502. The data stored in an unsecureddata container 542 may remain on the mobile device 502 when the datastored in the secure data container 528 is deleted from the mobiledevice 502. An enterprise may want to delete from the mobile device 502selected or all data, files, and/or applications owned, licensed orcontrolled by the enterprise (enterprise data) while leaving orotherwise preserving personal data, files, and/or applications owned,licensed or controlled by the user (personal data). This operation maybe referred to as a selective wipe. With the enterprise and personaldata arranged in accordance to the aspects described herein, anenterprise may perform a selective wipe.

The mobile device 502 may connect to enterprise resources 504 andenterprise services 508 at an enterprise, to the public Internet 548,and the like. The mobile device 502 may connect to enterprise resources504 and enterprise services 508 through virtual private networkconnections. The virtual private network connections, also referred toas microVPN or application-specific VPN, may be specific to particularapplications (as illustrated by microVPNs 550, particular devices,particular secured areas on the mobile device (as illustrated by O/S VPN552), and the like. For example, each of the wrapped applications in thesecured area of the mobile device 502 may access enterprise resourcesthrough an application specific VPN such that access to the VPN would begranted based on attributes associated with the application, possibly inconjunction with user or device attribute information. The virtualprivate network connections may carry Microsoft Exchange traffic,Microsoft Active Directory traffic, HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP)traffic, HyperText Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) traffic, applicationmanagement traffic, and the like. The virtual private networkconnections may support and enable single-sign-on authenticationprocesses 554. The single-sign-on processes may allow a user to providea single set of authentication credentials, which are then verified byan authentication service 558. The authentication service 558 may thengrant to the user access to multiple enterprise resources 504, withoutrequiring the user to provide authentication credentials to eachindividual enterprise resource 504.

The virtual private network connections may be established and managedby an access gateway 560. The access gateway 560 may include performanceenhancement features that manage, accelerate, and improve the deliveryof enterprise resources 504 to the mobile device 502. The access gateway560 may also re-route traffic from the mobile device 502 to the publicInternet 548, enabling the mobile device 502 to access publiclyavailable and unsecured applications that run on the public Internet548. The mobile device 502 may connect to the access gateway via atransport network 562. The transport network 562 may use one or moretransport protocols and may be a wired network, wireless network, cloudnetwork, local area network, metropolitan area network, wide areanetwork, public network, private network, and the like.

The enterprise resources 504 may include email servers, file sharingservers, SaaS applications, Web application servers, Windows applicationservers, and the like. Email servers may include Exchange servers, LotusNotes servers, and the like. File sharing servers may include ShareFileservers, and the like. SaaS applications may include Salesforce, and thelike. Windows application servers may include any application serverthat is built to provide applications that are intended to run on alocal Windows operating system, and the like. The enterprise resources504 may be premise-based resources, cloud-based resources, and the like.The enterprise resources 504 may be accessed by the mobile device 502directly or through the access gateway 560. The enterprise resources 504may be accessed by the mobile device 502 via the transport network 562.

The enterprise services 508 may include authentication services 558,threat detection services 564, device manager services 524, file sharingservices 568, policy manager services 570, social integration services572, application controller services 574, and the like. Authenticationservices 558 may include user authentication services, deviceauthentication services, application authentication services, dataauthentication services, and the like. Authentication services 558 mayuse certificates. The certificates may be stored on the mobile device502, by the enterprise resources 504, and the like. The certificatesstored on the mobile device 502 may be stored in an encrypted locationon the mobile device 502, the certificate may be temporarily stored onthe mobile device 502 for use at the time of authentication, and thelike. Threat detection services 564 may include intrusion detectionservices, unauthorized access attempt detection services, and the like.Unauthorized access attempt detection services may include unauthorizedattempts to access devices, applications, data, and the like. Devicemanagement services 524 may include configuration, provisioning,security, support, monitoring, reporting, and decommissioning services.File sharing services 568 may include file management services, filestorage services, file collaboration services, and the like. Policymanager services 570 may include device policy manager services,application policy manager services, data policy manager services, andthe like. Social integration services 572 may include contactintegration services, collaboration services, integration with socialnetworks such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, and the like.Application controller services 574 may include management services,provisioning services, deployment services, assignment services,revocation services, wrapping services, and the like.

The enterprise mobility technical architecture 500 may include anapplication store 578. The application store 578 may include unwrappedapplications 580, pre-wrapped applications 582, and the like.Applications may be populated in the application store 578 from theapplication controller 574. The application store 578 may be accessed bythe mobile device 502 through the access gateway 560, through the publicInternet 548, or the like. The application store 578 may be providedwith an intuitive and easy to use user interface.

A software development kit 584 may provide a user the capability tosecure applications selected by the user by wrapping the application asdescribed previously in this description. An application that has beenwrapped using the software development kit 584 may then be madeavailable to the mobile device 502 by populating it in the applicationstore 578 using the application controller 574.

The enterprise mobility technical architecture 500 may include amanagement and analytics capability 588. The management and analyticscapability 588 may provide information related to how resources areused, how often resources are used, and the like. Resources may includedevices, applications, data, and the like. How resources are used mayinclude which devices download which applications, which applicationsaccess which data, and the like. How often resources are used mayinclude how often an application has been downloaded, how many times aspecific set of data has been accessed by an application, and the like.

FIG. 6 is another illustrative enterprise mobility management system600. Some of the components of the mobility management system 500described above with reference to FIG. 5 have been omitted for the sakeof simplicity. The architecture of the system 600 depicted in FIG. 6 issimilar in many respects to the architecture of the system 500 describedabove with reference to FIG. 5 and may include additional features notmentioned above.

In this case, the left hand side represents an enrolled mobile device602 with a client agent 604, which interacts with gateway server 606(which includes Access Gateway and application controller functionality)to access various enterprise resources 608 and services 609 such asExchange, Sharepoint, public-key infrastructure (PKI) Resources,Kerberos Resources, Certificate Issuance service, as shown on the righthand side above. Although not specifically shown, the mobile device 602may also interact with an enterprise application store (StoreFront) forthe selection and downloading of applications.

The client agent 604 acts as the UI (user interface) intermediary forWindows apps/desktops hosted in an Enterprise data center, which areaccessed using the High-Definition User Experience (HDX)/ICA displayremoting protocol. The client agent 604 also supports the installationand management of native applications on the mobile device 602, such asnative iOS or Android applications. For example, the managedapplications 610 (mail, browser, wrapped application) shown in thefigure above are all native applications that execute locally on themobile device 602. Client agent 604 and application management frameworkof this architecture act to provide policy driven managementcapabilities and features such as connectivity and SSO (single sign on)to enterprise resources/services 608. The client agent 604 handlesprimary user authentication to the enterprise, normally to AccessGateway (AG) 606 with SSO to other gateway server components. The clientagent 604 obtains policies from gateway server 606 to control thebehavior of the managed applications 610 on the mobile device 602.

The Secure InterProcess Communication (IPC) links 612 between the nativeapplications 610 and client agent 604 represent a management channel,which may allow a client agent to supply policies to be enforced by theapplication management framework 614 “wrapping” each application. TheIPC channel 612 may also allow client agent 604 to supply credential andauthentication information that enables connectivity and SSO toenterprise resources 608. Finally, the IPC channel 612 may allow theapplication management framework 614 to invoke user interface functionsimplemented by client agent 604, such as online and offlineauthentication.

Communications between the client agent 604 and gateway server 606 areessentially an extension of the management channel from the applicationmanagement framework 614 wrapping each native managed application 610.The application management framework 614 may request policy informationfrom client agent 604, which in turn may request it from gateway server606. The application management framework 614 may requestauthentication, and client agent 604 may log into the gateway servicespart of gateway server 606 (also known as NETSCALER ACCESS GATEWAY).Client agent 604 may also call supporting services on gateway server606, which may produce input material to derive encryption keys for thelocal data vaults 616, or may provide client certificates which mayenable direct authentication to PKI protected resources, as more fullyexplained below.

In more detail, the application management framework 614 “wraps” eachmanaged application 610. This may be incorporated via an explicit buildstep, or via a post-build processing step. The application managementframework 614 may “pair” with client agent 604 on first launch of anapplication 610 to initialize the Secure IPC channel 612 and obtain thepolicy for that application. The application management framework 614may enforce relevant portions of the policy that apply locally, such asthe client agent login dependencies and some of the containment policiesthat restrict how local OS services may be used, or how they mayinteract with the managed application 610.

The application management framework 614 may use services provided byclient agent 604 over the Secure IPC channel 612 to facilitateauthentication and internal network access. Key management for theprivate and shared data vaults 616 (containers) may be also managed byappropriate interactions between the managed applications 610 and clientagent 604. Vaults 616 may be available only after online authentication,or may be made available after offline authentication if allowed bypolicy. First use of vaults 616 may require online authentication, andoffline access may be limited to at most the policy refresh periodbefore online authentication is again required.

Network access to internal resources may occur directly from individualmanaged applications 610 through Access Gateway 606. The applicationmanagement framework 614 may be responsible for orchestrating thenetwork access on behalf of each managed application 610. Client agent604 may facilitate these network connections by providing suitable timelimited secondary credentials obtained following online authentication.Multiple modes of network connection may be used, such as reverse webproxy connections and end-to-end VPN-style tunnels 618.

The Mail and Browser managed applications 610 have special status andmay make use of facilities that might not be generally available toarbitrary wrapped applications. For example, the Mail application 610may use a special background network access mechanism that allows it toaccess an Exchange server 608 over an extended period of time withoutrequiring a full AG logon. The Browser application 610 may use multipleprivate data vaults 616 to segregate different kinds of data.

This architecture may support the incorporation of various othersecurity features. For example, gateway server 606 (including itsgateway services) in some cases may not need to validate activedirectory (AD) passwords. It can be left to the discretion of anenterprise whether an AD password may be used as an authenticationfactor for some users in some situations. Different authenticationmethods may be used if a user is online or offline (i.e., connected ornot connected to a network).

Step up authentication is a feature wherein gateway server 606 mayidentify managed native applications 610 that are allowed to have accessto highly classified data requiring strong authentication, and ensurethat access to these applications is only permitted after performingappropriate authentication, even if this means a re-authentication isrequired by the user after a prior weaker level of login.

Another security feature of this solution is the encryption of the datavaults 616 (containers) on the mobile device 602. The vaults 616 may beencrypted so that all on-device data including files, databases, andconfigurations are protected. For on-line vaults, the keys may be storedon the server (gateway server 606), and for off-line vaults, a localcopy of the keys may be protected by a user password or biometricvalidation. If or when data is stored locally on the mobile device 602in the secure container 616, it may be preferred that a minimum of AES256 encryption algorithm be utilized.

Other secure container features may also be implemented. For example, alogging feature may be included, wherein security events happeninginside a managed application 610 may be logged and reported to thebackend. Data wiping may be supported, such as if or when the managedapplication 610 detects tampering, associated encryption keys may bewritten over with random data, leaving no hint on the file system thatuser data was destroyed. Screenshot protection may be another feature,where an application may prevent any data from being stored inscreenshots. For example, the key window's hidden property may be set toYES. This may cause whatever content is currently displayed on thescreen to be hidden, resulting in a blank screenshot where any contentwould normally reside.

Local data transfer may be prevented, such as by preventing any datafrom being locally transferred outside the application container, e.g.,by copying it or sending it to an external application. A keyboard cachefeature may operate to disable the autocorrect functionality forsensitive text fields. SSL certificate validation may be operable so theapplication specifically validates the server SSL certificate instead ofit being stored in the keychain. An encryption key generation featuremay be used such that the key used to encrypt data on the mobile device602 is generated using a passphrase or biometric data supplied by theuser (if offline access is required). It may be XORed with another keyrandomly generated and stored on the server side if offline access isnot required. Key Derivation functions may operate such that keysgenerated from the user password use KDFs (key derivation functions,notably Password-Based Key Derivation Function 2 (PBKDF2)) rather thancreating a cryptographic hash of it. The latter makes a key susceptibleto brute force or dictionary attacks.

Further, one or more initialization vectors may be used in encryptionmethods. An initialization vector will cause multiple copies of the sameencrypted data to yield different cipher text output, preventing bothreplay and cryptanalytic attacks. This will also prevent an attackerfrom decrypting any data even with a stolen encryption key. Further,authentication then decryption may be used, wherein application data isdecrypted only after the user has authenticated within the application.Another feature may relate to sensitive data in memory, which may bekept in memory (and not in disk) only when it's needed. For example,login credentials may be wiped from memory after login, and encryptionkeys and other data inside objective-C instance variables are notstored, as they may be easily referenced. Instead, memory may bemanually allocated for these.

An inactivity timeout may be implemented, wherein after a policy-definedperiod of inactivity, a user session is terminated.

Data leakage from the application management framework 614 may beprevented in other ways. For example, if or when a managed application610 is put in the background, the memory may be cleared after apredetermined (configurable) time period. When backgrounded, a snapshotmay be taken of the last displayed screen of the application to fastenthe foregrounding process. The screenshot may contain confidential dataand hence should be cleared.

Another security feature may relate to the use of an OTP (one timepassword) 620 without the use of an AD (active directory) 622 passwordfor access to one or more applications. In some cases, some users do notknow (or are not permitted to know) their AD password, so these usersmay authenticate using an OTP 620 such as by using a hardware OTP systemlike SecurID (OTPs may be provided by different vendors also, such asEntrust or Gemalto). In some cases, after a user authenticates with auser ID, a text may be sent to the user with an OTP 620. In some cases,this may be implemented only for online use, with a prompt being asingle field.

An offline password may be implemented for offline authentication forthose managed applications 610 for which offline use is permitted viaenterprise policy. For example, an enterprise may want StoreFront to beaccessed in this manner In this case, the client agent 604 may requirethe user to set a custom offline password and the AD password is notused. Gateway server 606 may provide policies to control and enforcepassword standards with respect to the minimum length, character classcomposition, and age of passwords, such as described by the standardWindows Server password complexity requirements, although theserequirements may be modified.

Another feature may relate to the enablement of a client sidecertificate for certain applications 610 as secondary credentials (forthe purpose of accessing PM protected web resources via the applicationmanagement framework micro VPN feature). For example, a managedapplication 610 may utilize such a certificate. In this case,certificate-based authentication using ActiveSync protocol may besupported, wherein a certificate from the client agent 604 may beretrieved by gateway server 606 and used in a keychain. Each managedapplication 610 may have one associated client certificate, identifiedby a label that is defined in gateway server 606.

Gateway server 606 may interact with an enterprise special purpose webservice to support the issuance of client certificates to allow relevantmanaged applications to authenticate to internal PKI protectedresources.

The client agent 604 and the application management framework 614 may beenhanced to support obtaining and using client certificates forauthentication to internal PM protected network resources. More than onecertificate may be supported, such as to match various levels ofsecurity and/or separation requirements. The certificates may be used bythe Mail and Browser managed applications 610, and ultimately byarbitrary wrapped applications 610 (provided those applications use webservice style communication patterns where it is reasonable for theapplication management framework to mediate HTTPS requests).

Application management client certificate support on iOS may rely onimporting a public-key cryptography standards (PKCS) 12 BLOB (BinaryLarge Object) into the iOS keychain in each managed application 610 foreach period of use. Application management framework client certificatesupport may use a HTTPS implementation with private in-memory keystorage. The client certificate may not be present in the iOS keychainand may not be persisted except potentially in “online-only” data valuethat is strongly protected.

Mutual SSL or TLS may also be implemented to provide additional securityby requiring that a mobile device 602 is authenticated to theenterprise, and vice versa. Virtual smart cards for authentication togateway server 606 may also be implemented.

Both limited and full Kerberos support may be additional features. Thefull support feature relates to an ability to do full Kerberos login toActive Directory (AD) 622, using an AD password or trusted clientcertificate, and obtain Kerberos service tickets to respond to HTTPNegotiate authentication challenges. The limited support feature relatesto constrained delegation in Citrix Access Gateway Enterprise Edition(AGEE), where AGEE supports invoking Kerberos protocol transition so itcan obtain and use Kerberos service tickets (subject to constraineddelegation) in response to HTTP Negotiate authentication challenges.This mechanism works in reverse web proxy (aka corporate virtual privatenetwork (CVPN)) mode, and when HTTP (but not HTTPS) connections areproxied in VPN and MicroVPN mode.

Another feature may relate to application container locking and wiping,which may automatically occur upon jail-break or rooting detections, andoccur as a pushed command from administration console, and may include aremote wipe functionality even when a managed application 610 is notrunning.

A multi-site architecture or configuration of enterprise applicationstore and an application controller may be supported that allows usersto be serviced from one of several different locations in case offailure.

In some cases, managed applications 610 may be allowed to access acertificate and private key via an API (for example, OpenSSL). Trustedmanaged applications 610 of an enterprise may be allowed to performspecific Public Key operations with an application's client certificateand private key. Various use cases may be identified and treatedaccordingly, such as if or when an application behaves like a browserand no certificate access is required, if or when an application reads acertificate for “who am I,” if or when an application uses thecertificate to build a secure session token, and if or when anapplication uses private keys for digital signing of important data(e.g. transaction log) or for temporary data encryption.

Loader Application with Secondary Embedded Application Object

FIG. 7 depicts an example loader application with a secondary embeddedapplication object in accordance with one or more illustrative aspectsdescribed herein. Referring to FIG. 7, a first iOS application maycomprise a loader application 710. This loader application 710 maycomprise, for example, the first iOS application described above withregards to step 310. The loader application 710 may comprise a firstinstance of UIApplication 720. The first instance of UIApplication 720may comprise a plurality of known UIApplication methods. A second iOSapplication may comprise a custom iOS application 750. The custom iOSapplication 750 may comprise, for example, the second iOS applicationdescribed at step 220. The custom iOS application 750 may comprise asecond instance of UIApplication 760. The second instance ofUIApplication 760 may comprise unknown UIApplication methods.

Embedding the custom iOS application 750 into the loader application 710may cause problems because both the custom iOS application 750 and theloader application 710 may both call their respective instances ofUIApplication. This may cause the loader application 710 and the customiOS application 750 to fail. To remedy the problem, a computingplatform, such as the computing platform 410, may dynamically generate anew version 730 of the custom iOS application 750 to embed into theloader application 710. The new version 730 may comprise a class 740comprising NSObject and a derived class. Thus the derived class maycomprise the methods, properties, variables, and selectors of bothNSObject and the second instance of UIApplication 760. The computingplatform may determine the methods, properties, variables, and selectorsof the second instance of UIApplication 760 by inspecting, at runtimeand via objectiveC inspection classes, the second instance ofUIApplication 760.

The class 740 may forward requests for the second instance ofUIApplication 760 to the loader application 710. By registering theclass 740 as a forwarding object for unknown selectors, methods definedby the second instance of UIApplication 760 may execute withoutinitiating the second instance of UIApplication 760. For example, thecomputing platform may embed the new version 730 into the loaderapplication 710, thus allowing the loader application 710 to perform themethods of the custom iOS application 750, without calling the secondinstance of UIApplication 760. Further, this may allow for the firstinstance of UIApplication 720 and the second instance of UIApplication760 to work as a single UIApplication while allowing for custombehaviors to exist of the custom iOS application 750. Additionally, thisallows for the loader application 710 to maintain control over the firstinstance of UIApplication 720.

After the computing platform embeds the new version 730 into the loaderapplication 710, the computing platform may transmit, to a server suchas the server 415, the loader application 710. This may comprise, forexample, the transmission described at step 470.

FIG. 8 depicts an example computing device implementing a loaderapplication with an embedded secondary application in accordance withone or more illustrative aspects described herein. Referring to FIG. 8,a computing device 810, such as the user device 420, may generate a userinterface 830. For example, the computing device 810 may implement themethod 400, as described above. The computing device 810 may beconfigured to run a version of iOS. The user interface 830 may comprise,for example, the home screen of a user's cell phone, and may comprise aplurality of icons. Each of the plurality of icons may initiate an iOSapplication in response to receiving, via the user interface 830, a userinput. For example, a user may touch the icon. Using the methodsdescribed herein, the computing device 810 may generate an icon 820 forthe loader application. The icon 820 may comprise an image associatedwith the embedded secondary application and the name of the embeddedsecondary application. For example, the embedded secondary applicationmay comprise “Company Mail.” In this example, the icon 820 for theloader application may resemble an icon for “Company Mail.” In responseto receiving an input, via the user interface, corresponding to “CompanyMail,” the user's cell phone may launch the loader application andexecute the methods of “Company Mail.”

Although the subject matter has been described in language specific tostructural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understoodthat the subject matter defined in the appended claims is notnecessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above.Rather, the specific features and acts described above are described asexample implementations of the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method, comprising: initiating, at a computingplatform comprising at least one processor, memory, and a communicationinterface, by the at least one processor, a first iOS applicationcomprising a first name and a first instance of UIApplication comprisingan NSObject class, wherein the NSObject object class specifies aplurality of parameters and variables of a loader application;embedding, into the first iOS application, by the at least oneprocessor, a second iOS application comprising a second name, a secondinstance of UIApplication, and a first derived class, wherein the firstderived class is derived based on the NSObject class; generating, by theat least one processor, based on the NSObject class and the firstderived class, a second derived class; generating, by the at least oneprocessor, an iPhone Application (IPA) file comprising the first iOSapplication wherein the first iOS application comprises the secondderived class and the second name of the embedded second iOSapplication; and transmitting, to a plurality of mobile devices, by theat least one processor and via the communication interface, the IPAfile.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising inspecting, by the atleast one processor and via objectiveC inspection classes, the firstderived class.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first derived classcomprises at least one of: a variable of the second iOS application, aselector of the second iOS application, a method of the second iOSapplication, and a property of the second iOS application.
 4. The methodof claim 2, wherein the inspecting the first derived class occurs atruntime.
 5. The method of claim 1, further comprising loading, by the atleast one processor and within an address space of the first iOSapplication, the second iOS application.
 6. The method of claim 5,wherein the loading comprises loading, prior to the embedding, thesecond iOS application.
 7. The method of claim 1, further comprisingconfiguring, by the at least one processor, the second derived class asa forwarding object for unknown selectors.
 8. The method of claim 1,wherein the first iOS application comprises the loader application andwherein the second iOS application comprises a third party application.9. A computing platform, comprising: at least one processor; acommunication interface communicatively coupled to the at least oneprocessor; and memory storing computer-readable instructions that, whenexecuted by the at least one processor, cause the computing platform to:initiate, by the at least one processor, a first iOS applicationcomprising a first name and a first instance of UIApplication comprisingan NSObject class, wherein the NSObject object class specifies aplurality of parameters and variables of a loader application; embed,into the first iOS application, by the at least one processor, a secondiOS application comprising a second name, a second instance ofUIApplication, and a first derived class, wherein the first derivedclass is derived based on the NSObject class; generate, by the at leastone processor, based on the NSObject class and the first derived class,a second derived class; generate, by the at least one processor, aniPhone Application (IPA) file comprising the first iOS applicationwherein the first iOS application comprises the second derived class andthe second name of the embedded second iOS application; and transmit, toa plurality of mobile devices, by the at least one processor and via thecommunication interface, the IPA file.
 10. The computing platform ofclaim 9, wherein the memory stores additional computer-readableinstructions, that when executed by the at least one processor, causethe computing platform to: inspect, by the at least one processor, viaobjectiveC inspection classes, and at runtime, the first derived class,wherein the first derived class comprises at least one of: a variable ofthe second iOS application, a selector of the second iOS application, amethod of the second iOS application, and a property of the second iOSapplication.
 11. The computing platform of claim 9, wherein the memorystores additional computer-readable instructions, that when executed bythe at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to: load,by the at least one processor, prior to the embedding, and within anaddress space of the first iOS application, the second iOS application.12. The computing platform of claim 9, wherein the memory storesadditional computer-readable instructions, that when executed by the atleast one processor, cause the at least one processor to: configure, bythe at least one processor, the second derived class as a forwardingobject for unknown selectors.
 13. The computing platform of claim 9,wherein the first iOS application comprises-a the loader application andwherein the second iOS application comprises a third party application.14. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media storinginstructions that, when executed by a computing platform comprising atleast one processor, memory, and a communication interface, cause thecomputing platform to: initiate, by the at least one processor, a firstiOS application comprising a first name and a first instance ofUIApplication comprising an NSObject class, wherein the NSObject objectclass specifies a plurality of parameters and variables of a loaderapplication; embed, into the first iOS application, by the at least oneprocessor, a second iOS application comprising a second name, a secondinstance of UIApplication, and a first derived class, wherein the firstderived class is derived based on the NSObject class; derive, by the atleast one processor, based on the NSObject class and the first derivedclass, a second derived class; generate, by the at least one processor,an iPhone Application (IPA) file comprising the first iOS application,wherein the first iOS application comprises the second derived class andthe second name of the embedded second iOS application; and transmit, toa plurality of mobile devices, by the at least one processor and via thecommunication interface, the IPA file.
 15. The one or morenon-transitory computer-readable media of claim 14, wherein the memorystores additional computer readable media storing instructions, thatwhen executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least oneprocessor to: inspect, by the at least one processor, via objectiveCinspection classes, and at runtime, the first derived class.
 16. The oneor more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 15, wherein thefirst derived class comprises at least one of: a variable of the secondiOS application, a selector of the second iOS application, a method ofthe second iOS application, and a property of the second iOSapplication.
 17. The one or more non-transitory computer-readable mediaof claim 14, wherein the memory stores additional computer readablemedia storing instructions, that, when executed by the at least oneprocessor, cause the at least one processor to: load, by the at leastone processor and within an address space of the first iOS application,the second iOS application.
 18. The one or more non-transitorycomputer-readable media of claim 17, wherein the memory storesadditional computer readable media storing instructions, that whenexecuted by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processorto: load the second iOS application prior to the embedding.
 19. The oneor more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 14, wherein thememory stores additional computer readable media storing instructions,that when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least oneprocessor to: configure, by the at least one processor, the secondderived class as a forwarding object for unknown selectors.
 20. The oneor more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 14, wherein thefirst iOS application comprises the loader application and wherein thesecond iOS application comprises a third party application.